Oklahoma City ices Denver, 101-84 (clever, right?)

It’s not how I envisioned Oklahoma City finally beating Denver. I pictured a full, roaring Ford Center. I pictured Carmelo and KD dueling down the stretch, trading buckets in a pressure packed fourth quarter and in the end, the Thunder making one big play to win it.

I didn’t really see it coming as a 17-point blowout, 101-84, in front of a sparse crowd with no ‘Melo. But all the same, it’s equally as sweet.

The Thunder needed this game. Not only to stop the three-game skid, but moreover, to restore some confidence in themselves. The lost the close ones last week. Then they dropped a bad one to Chicago two nights ago. People were starting to wonder if they were slipping. And though there was no Carmelo Anthony, OKC put a whipping on the division-leading Nuggets. It’s a good, good win for many reasons. I know ‘Melo didn’t play, but that hasn’t hurt the Nuggets in keeping their eight-game win streak going. So while that’s a fair point, the fact OKC was focused and fired up is what really proved to be the difference.

Everything clicked tonight. The offense was crisp. The defense was excellent. OKC rebounded the ball as good as ever. There was a real focus to the team tonight. Kevin Durant notched his 20th straight game with 25 points or more as he scored 30 on 12-19 shooting, but Russell Westbrook was quietly awesome. He had 12 points (5-11 shooting), eight assists, three rebounds and just two turnovers. And after J.R. Smith started hot from 3 (started 4-5, finished 5-10), Westbrook really turned up the heat on Smith playing some really solid defense.

And in a way, watching Westbrook work extremely hard on the defensive end was kind of upsetting. He had a couple sequences where he was an absolute terror. And of course, I couldn’t help but wonder, “Where is that all the time?” I distinctly remember one play where Smith was dribbling behind a Nene screen trying to find an open look but Westbrook never gave him any room and ending up challenging the shot perfectly, forcing a miss. Russ has the ability to be a really, really good defender. And sometimes, he is. But if he cranks it up for 35 minutes a night like he did in stretches tonight, this Thunder team will be tough to score on.

On the rebounding: OKC won the boards 38-31, but Denver had only four offensive rebounds and they all came in the second half. So if you deduce that properly, that means the Nuggets didn’t have an offensive rebound in the first half. I can’t express how big that is. This was definitely OKC’s best rebounding effort of the season. Thabo and Serge Ibaka tied with seven rebounds, but really the whole team did a solid job on the boards. I think the number now is that the Thunder is 20-6 when winning the battle on the glass.

Notes:

It appeared that Nene was going to absolutely dominate the game early on. But after six points and a couple rebounds, he completely disappeared. Give credit to Nenad Krstic who got a lot more physical in the second quarter. Krstic had eight points and four rebounds in 24 minutes, but he played quality minutes tonight.

What sealed the deal was a great run to finish the third. OKC outscored Denver 28-15 in the third, held the Nuggs to 5-16 shooting in the quarter and finished the quarter on a 9-0 run.

Thabo really jumpstarted that excellent third quarter. He made two wonderful defensive plays on Chauncey Billups, had an awesome no-look pass and had an athletic put-back on a miss by Westbrook. Really solid game for Thabo.

Of course, the highlight of the night was Durant losing a shoe and still blocking Aaron Afflalo with only one kick on. If you missed it, I have video for you right here.

How about that turnaround jumper by Nick Collison to beat the shot clock? I’m sure Nick works on that one every day. Looked like MJ on that one.

Crazy stat: OKC was 21-32 at the rim. Denver was 9-19. It’s rare someone shoots under 50 percent at the rim, but the fact Denver only got 19 looks for there is huge.

Jeff Green was solid again (15-5). James Harden scored 12 off the bench and hit three 3s. Collison chipped in 10. This is the type of stuff the Thunder need in support of KD to win games. If they get this kind of production all around on a consistent basis, they can and will be able to beat anyone.

The crowd was just fantastic tonight. People don’t understand, Oklahoma City is literally covered in ice. It’s a total disaster outside right now. But an estimated 10,000 fans showed up to the Ford Center and made a good amount of noise. Officially it was a sellout, but the fact that many people turned out is really cool. I honestly wouldn’t have been shocked if 500 people were there.

Rejected lede that I wrote mid-way through the fourth that I deemed wayyy too lame: “Oh the weather outside is frightful, but the basketball in the Ford Center was so delightful.” I bet Brian Davis is mad he didn’t think of that one tonight.

Oh, and Grant Long was on his game, getting in five That’s Thunder Basketball’s tonight. What’s really impressive is that he got three plugged in a two minute span. Also, someone tweeted me and said that the PA guy snuck in a That’s Thunder Basketball after a defensive play. Maybe they’ve been commanded by the higher-ups to say it. Conspiracy.

Denver had 23 turnovers tonight. OKC just 11. The Thunder took 15 more shots. But how about this, Denver attempted only 66 shots (hitting only 41 percent). That’s insane.

From the start, this didn’t have your typical feel with the Nuggets. Normally it feels like OKC is just overmatched. I guess not having ‘Melo was big or something, but still, typically it seems like the Thunder is just trying to hang tough while Denver abuses them inside and scores from everywhere. I know people will point to Carmelo not playing, but like I said, the Nuggets have been winning without him. And the most important thing is, ‘Melo or no ‘Melo, Oklahoma City got a win it desperately needed and injected a shot of confidence in the proverbial arm.

I was in 317 and then someone in the arena moved me and my friends to 113 after the half. Was a nice thank you for showing up from the team but I think I prefer being in loud city where the seats are a little bigger and you can stretch out.

I heard the "MVP"s when KD was at the line but I've always thought it was annoying and sycophantic when it's done for Kobe and LeBron, can't really get behind it for Kev.

There were several "That's Thunder Basketball"s but it was done whenever there was a turnover... thought they were just being funny...

Team attempts during the last 10 games are down to 13 per game which ranks 27th and is only about 1.5 more than last season's league lowest pace.

Harden has increased by 1 compared to his previous rate but Durant has been more selective reducing attempts by about 1 (though he is on fire FG%-wise) and Westbrook's previous 2 are gone as well. Green still taking as many, just not hitting that well.

Westbrook hasn't made a 3 pointer in 10 games and has only attempted 3. Is this just a temporary decision (Coaching or player or both?) or a sign of things to come? Even if he doesn't stay this extreme (they'll probably re-try it at some point but will it work?), it is notable. Only 3 of the 15 starting PGs in the west lack a credible 3 point game.

I've mentioned the starting lineup's frequent weak performances and its better performance against the east than the west. I'll add that they tend to do better in the 3rd quarter than the 1st. Part of the critique of the starting lineup may need to seen separately as poor starts. that is on the Coach and the players somewhat apart from the specific lineup. Of course if another lineup got a chance you could compare...

Also, just wanted to mention that the Nuggets really can't blame this loss on melo's absence. The Thunder got a ton of points in the paint. The team was 21 of 32 at the rim and pretty much everyone who got decent minutes got their turn - except Harden (0-2), who was BLOCKED TWICE, and Eric Maynor (0-1). Mullens and Ollie had no attempts.

Harden is really playing well on D and on the perimeter, but he really has Westbrook's Disease right now, driving into the lane, drawing the triple team then getting blocked instead of making the pass. Hope he get's a handle on this soon.

sorry guys - I had satellite issues so I only got to see 1/2 the game so I won't do a breakdown on just a half - also I'm supposed to be going to the game on Sunday night (assuming the turnpike is clear) so I wont have a Warriors recap until Monday night - hopefully by the middle of next week I will be back on schedule . . .

nice! that's crazy, what are the chances?? even crazier-- i moved to 304 after the first quarter cause i had some friends there, and then we moved to 110 after the 3rd quarter! again, what are the chances?! so do you normally sit in 317? i have season tickets there.. if you start doing a MVP chant, i'll join in..

On the idea of an "MVP" chant for Durant, I understand the point, but maybe for the next couple of home games, when Durant is at the foul line, start a chant like this: "All Star!" (pause) "All Star!" (pause) "All Star!"

It would at least be unique - seems like almost everyone has an "MVP" chant for one of their players - and it might just catch on. Sort of a nice way to congratulate him.

@GAPwhere were you sitting? i was in 317 and heard a few people around me yelling MVP when KD was shooting free throws.. so i yelled it a few times myself.. but it was never in a chant form.. they just yelled "MVP" once each time.. i'd really love to get a chant going when he is shooting free throws.. a guy like KD, i think he'd be really touched and honored that the home fans showed him love like that..

I want Kelenna Azubuike. He's just what we need. It's unfortunate that he got injured and is out for the season, because I would have traded for him in a heartbeat. Perhaps we can get him this offseason.

DeWayne :The game was crazy. It seemed to me that the circus shots were falling tonight, which was a welcome relief after Wednesday night. How about that shot where KD lost the ball when driving, then managed to grab it again and still slam it down. I think that was right around the time the Nuggets just knew it wasn’t their night.

The game was crazy. It seemed to me that the circus shots were falling tonight, which was a welcome relief after Wednesday night. How about that shot where KD lost the ball when driving, then managed to grab it again and still slam it down. I think that was right around the time the Nuggets just knew it wasn't their night.